Do you wish that others could be more compassionate and understanding? How do we deal with hateful, violent people who seem to be intent on ruining our wonderful world?

Often, our first reaction is to condemn violence, to separate ourselves from it. Yet who among us hasn’t ever had an ill-intentioned thought or behaved in a hurtful manner towards another?

As Deepak Chopra, M.D. noted about the events of 9/11, “It is imperative that we pray and offer solace and help to each other. But if you and I are having a single thought of violence or hatred against anyone in the world at this moment, we are contributing to the wounding of the world.”

We now have an opportunity to choose whether we radiate love and goodwill toward others or fall into the trap of fear and illusion. Turn off the television, create a quiet space to feel the feelings that are moving within you. We have found peace and comfort in doing the Compassion Exercise from the Avatar® ReSurfacing® workshop, which we have reprinted here.

We’ve also reprinted some Prayers for Peace and we invite you to share them with others.

The following compassion exercise is reprinted (with permission) from ReSurfacing®: Techniques for Exploring Consciousness. It requires no special preparation. Enjoy. Consider exploring it as a small act of kindness for the world.

Compassion Exercise
Honesty with yourself leads to compassion for others.

Objective:
To increase the amount of compassion in the world.

Expected result:
A personal sense of peace.

Instructions:
This exercise can be done anywhere that people congregate (airports, malls, parks, beaches, etc). It should be done on strangers, unobtrusively and from some distance. Try to do all five steps on the same person.

Step 1: With your attention on the person, repeat to yourself: “Just like me, this person is seeking some happiness for his / her life.”

Step 2: With your attention on the person, repeat to yourself: “Just like me, this person is trying to avoid suffering in his / her life.”

Step 3: With your attention on the person, repeat to yourself: “Just like me, this person has known sadness, loneliness, and despair.”

Step 4: With your attention on the person, repeat to yourself: “Just like me, this person is seeking to fill his / her needs.”

Step 5: With your attention on the person, repeat to yourself: “Just like me, this person is learning about life.”

Variations:

1. Done by couples to increase understanding of each other.

2. Done on old enemies and antagonists still present in your memories.